Guide: The Tropical Community Tank

Origins:

Tropical ”community” fish is a category that is widely spread in regard to location and origins. The tropical category refers to fish that prefer warm waters and are non-aggressive making them well suited to live in a peaceful community setting. Many popular tropical fish are from South America such as tetras, angelfish, and plecostomus sp. There are also many species such as the gourami’s and barbs, which originate in Indonesia, Sumatra and India, that can also make good options for the tropical fish aquarium.

Why they make great pets and great beginner fish:

Tropical Fish make great pets and wonderful first time fish options due to the fact that they are extremely hardy and easy to care. Another reason that they are great pets and great beginner fish is the small size of most of the tropical fish species. They are very peaceful so it is easy to mix many species in a tank for a variety of colors. They are also very compatible with live plants, or can be easily kept in a fish only tank. Tropical Fish can be kept in a wide variety of tank sizes and styles.

Water parameters and care:

Ammonia: low to 0 ppm

Nitrite: low to 0 ppm

Nitrate: under 20ppm

pH: 6.5-7.2

KH: 4-8 dKH

GH: 5-7 dH

Temperature: 22°C - 27°C

We recommend the use of Neutral Regulator to set pH to a neutral 7.0 pH while removing chlorine & chloramine as well as detoxifying ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. It can also help to use products such as Purigen, Matrix, Stability and Prime to maintain water clarity and overall health of the tropical aquarium.

Tropical fish species are omnivores and generally need both meaty proteins in addition to vegetable matter in their diet. A lack of nutrient and an over abundance of protein can lead to compaction and digestive issues. To provide a well-rounded diet, we recommend Seachem NutriDiet: Tropical to provide proteins such as whole fish-meal as well as squid while providing a nutritious chlorella algae baseline.

Maintenance:

Water changes can be done as necessary and we recommend that you change at least 10-20% bi-weekly in tropical environments to keep the fish healthy and tank environment free of organic build-up. Tropical Fish tend to have a low to moderate bio-load and do need good filtration as well as adequately sized aquariums. In addition, Seachem Stability and Seachem Pristine are great choices for adding a boost to bio-filtration after water changes as well as between water changes in a tropical fish environment.